Shelter Offshore’s Top Ten Offshore Investment Tips

Moving abroad can be a stressful time because there is so much to organise, what’s more it takes time to acclimatise yourself to your new surroundings and really settle in to your new home, your new town and even your new nation.  On top of all of this, many expatriates quickly become aware how much more complex their entire financial position is now that they have moved abroad.

For one thing your tax status changes immediately as an expatriate – this can have positive long-term benefits, but almost as many short-term complications can arise from this change in status!  Expats often also realise that they can utilise the offshore world of savings and investment opportunities once they move abroad too.

However, with all of this choice and potential comes a certain amount of confusion and ambiguity, which is where we usually suggest that you might like to recruit the services of a seasoned financial adviser.  But whether you do or not, here are Shelter Offshore’s top ten offshore investment tips to set you on your way.  We’re not going to tell you to buy low and sell high because we figure most sane people know this already, nor will we patronise your sensibilities and advise you that if something seems too good to be true then it probably is…

We figure you know all of the investment clichés – and you know that a cliché is only a cliché because it’s true.  So, if you want some fresh perspective on what makes for a good approach to investing, read on.  But before you do, please bear in mind that the information contained in this article does not, nor is it intended to amount to comprehensive investment advice.  Before making an investment or applying for any savings or investment vehicle, we firmly believe that you should seek professional advice!

1 - Whilst you should think long-term about any investment strategy, you should have at least an annual review of your investment and savings portfolio, probably with an adviser’s assistance.  That way, you keep your eye on the long-term returns without becoming disheartened about short-term blips, but you also keep all angles covered in case a short-term blip is actually a big problem that could be disadvantageous in the long-run.

2 - Realise that sometimes you have to stop digging that investment hole and cut your losses.  Of course, in an ideal world that will never happen – but we don’t live in an ideal world.  So keep this in mind.

3 - Remember to think as much about selling your shares or exiting the market or fund as you think about getting in on the investment opportunity in the first place.  Whilst most people will do plenty of reading and thinking before they commit to an investment strategy, few people think much before they sell their shares or drop out of an investment fund path.  This is not sensible – you need to look at your potential decisions from a wider and longer-term perspective before you commit to them.

4 - Remember that when it comes to investing offshore, the same considerations apply to investing, saving or even banking onshore.  Do not put all of your money into one fund, do not invest all of your assets with one company or institution, and basically, do not put all of your monetary eggs in one basket!

5 - If you don’t understand why a financial adviser recommends you invest in a certain fund or in a certain way, or you don’t quite fully understand the approach or fund that’s being recommended to you – and you ask all the questions you need to ask – consider walking away.  It could just be that you can’t make sense of something because it doesn’t make sense.

6 - You may be hearing investment tips and sure fire savings bets from friends and colleagues, you might be tempted to consider these tip offs and buy in, however, you need to know that unless advice is from a trusted and professional source, how can you trust it?  And if you can’t trust it, how can you then blame anyone else if you follow it!

7 - If you have a gut feeling about an investment solution or proposition and yet it seems to go against what most other investors are doing, that doesn’t necessarily mean you’re the mad one!  Many of the world’s most famous investors have been mavericks compared to their peers at the time!

8 - What goes up and up and up generally goes pop and goes down again – bear that in mind and don’t get too carried away.

9 - If something does go pop and leaves your investments lingering at a low level for a long period of time, know when to stop flogging that dead horse!

10 - And finally, consider reinvesting investment generated income or dividends – by reinvesting you maximise the whole ramping up concept and can make your money grow so much faster.

And there ends the Shelter Offshore sermon!  If you would like to discuss your savings and investments or strategies that you can adopt to maximise your returns in as tax friendly a manner as is possible now that you’ve expatriated, feel free to .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) and we’ll put you in touch with our preferred partners.